Fate's Card
by Hwoarang Girl
Summary: When his Dark Magician card comes down with a mysterious virus, Yugi is bewildered; on the contrary, in the card realm, his monsters begin a struggle to save their friend's life... *PART 5 HAS FINALLY ARRIVED ^.^ *
1. Ambiguity

Fate's Card

"Spoken"

_'Thought'_

^~*^~* Change from the normal realm to the Card realm ^~*^~*

A/n: This was the monsters fic I promised all the 'Shadowing Glory' reviewers for giving me such a wonderful response! This is dedicated to you all, thank you once again!

If you hadn't noticed, this is not a humour fic, so do not expect any lame humour or random plot less yet entertaining dribble! My fore apologies to any Dark Magician fans for all the torture the poor monster will go through… T_T …poor guy…  

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. Darn. U_U; __

Part 1 – Ambiguity 

-~*~^~*~-

Yugi couldn't understand for the life of him what had caused this to happen. He stared down long and hard at his Dark Magician card that was resting in his small palm.

_'I don't understand… how did this virus affect you?'_

It was just so sudden. He had drawn out his card and placed it on the offence, then, he saw a flicker from the corner of his eye. When he scrutinized it carefully, he caught sight of the attack and defence points flickering up and down until, out of the blue, they went berserk, and he had stared in horror as his favourite monster incinerated from the battlefield. 

Luckily, he had Gaia the Fierce Knight at hand, and recovered in his unique, almost miraculous way. 

But that hadn't mattered. 

Whether victory of defeat had stood in his path did not concern him. His duel monsters were _his_. His heart was in his cards and he had a compassion for every one of them. They were more than just flimsy pieces of card; they were his glory. 

And now one was… _suffering._

Yugi was more than sure that they could suffer, anything with a heart and soul could. 

That was what really hurt him. 

If he didn't believe that they had souls, he could merely shrug it off; but since he didn't he was worried. And all he could do was hope that it was some glitch, in the duelling system that had been used, that would never occur again. 

Maybe he could convince himself of that, to stop the melancholy he had felt when it had happened, to know that _his_ Dark Magician wasn't suffering.

He quickly snapped out of his thought when he got a tap on the shoulder and an impassive glance from Yami, then began to trek after his friends as they walked away.

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*

The Mystical Elf stepped to the side out of the way, leaving a path to a small cleared spot, allowing the mounted knight and his horse through. The Celtic Guardian bit into his lip and clenched his fists as his amber eyes fixated upon Gaia the Fierce Knight as he hopped off of his steed and carefully cradled the Dark Magician to the floor.

Silence ensued.

They hadn't understood what had happened. 

A few seconds beforehand he had been smiling… brimming with life and radiating with serenity; the next thing they knew he was on his knees, clutching his head and gasping… whimpering in agonizing anguish; then he was sprawled out, unconscious on the ground.

They were _terrified_ by it.

When the Dark Magician finally stirred and slowly focused his bright blue eyes, all three present monsters jumped in to give him a hug of relief, resulting in a small dog pile upon him. 

"Thanks," he spluttered as he laughed the best one could with three other piled upon you, "…You can get off of me now."

After doing just that, their unrestrained action of compassion for their leader and foremost friend left them all slightly embarrassed. The Mystical Elf flushed as she entwined her fingers together, Gaia hastily jumped upon horseback and readied his steed for a quick exit keeping his uneasy grimace out of sight, and the Celtic Guardian sheepishly grinned.

Walking over, the odd expressions etched onto the three's faces received taunting stares from the Summoned Skull. "…I don't want to know," he said under his breath as he approached the Dark Magician.

Gaia took the first opportunity he could to gallop off, the Mystical Elf resumed her composure so quickly that it had seemed she had never acted as she did and the Celtic Guardian - well he didn't really care, and just continued as per usual.

"Take it," the Summoned Skull said gruffly as he shoved a small bit of paper into Dark Magician's chest, "Courtesy of the Flame Swordsman across the South border."  

He then strode off as abruptly as he had come.

"…Very sociable…" the Celtic Guardian commented as he approached, "So what does it say?"

"Let me finish reading it first, then ask the questions," came the playful reply, "Or is it too much to ask?"

" Whatever. So…?"

The Mystical Elf hung over Dark Magician's shoulder and began reading it too, "Hmm… what is your opinion?"

The Dark Magician handed over the note to the waiting Celtic Guardian and looked up at the Mystical Elf.

"We shall set out as soon as we can and-"

"I think not," she interrupted with great sombre, "Not after what just happened."

The Celtic Guardian finished reading and silently agreed with a nod.

Dark Magician sighed. "You are right, as ever…but-"

Mystical Elf shushed him with a single delicate finger and leant in towards him. "You will do nothing tonight, and will rest until we know exactly what happened to you."

 "We are all sworn to secrecy about it, and we only have what is best for you in mind," the Celtic Guardian added in, " we are concerned with your health."

"As am I, but, we cannot ignore this request."

As he rose to his feet, the Mystical Elf grabbed him by the arm and looked deeply into his eyes. The Celtic Guardian crossed his arms tightly across his chest. "We are not _ignoring_ the request, simply _postponing_ it."

The Dark Magician wasn't going to argue anymore; he felt fatigued all of a sudden, and stood still on the spot. 

The Mystical Elf had already begun to walk away, and hadn't noticed him freeze. The Celtic Guardian, however…

He placed a hand upon Dark Magician's shoulder and tilted his head questioningly. 

The Dark Magician put on a smile and the Celtic Guardian stepped back, taking away his hand, before turning round and walking off his own way, glancing back over his shoulder after a couple of seconds.

The Dark Magician slowly began to make his own way inside, quietly thinking to himself. 

The Celtic Guardian turned his head back round and resumed his course.

*                       *                       *                       *                       *                       *

As he raised a hand to his head and groaned, he watched another hand push his purplish indigo hair from out of his face. He tried to pull himself up and speak, but the hand gently pushed him down again. 

"Take it easy." Gaia told him.

Dark Magician nodded, "What-"

"The Summoned Skull saw you collapse and brought you here, travelling past myself on his way. You should thank him when he returns."

"…I Shall."

"Rest."

He narrowed his eyes and sighed as he relaxed his previously tensed muscles. Rest was a good idea; he was feeling strangely groggy. Sleep was sounding so desirable… his eyelids dropped down and he instantly drifted off.

"Explain to me." 

Gaia turned round and took the bowl of water off of the Summoned Skull and dipped a folded cloth into it.

After draining off the excess water, he carefully placed it on Dark Magician's burning forehead. "There isn't anything to explain," he retorted, turning his body round, "earlier whilst myself, Celtic Guardian and Mystical Elf were with him he fell to his knees clutching his head, crying in pain then collapsed. Just like that. You know as much as we do." 

"Why wasn't I informed of it?" he growled.

"Because we did not want to cause worry until we knew it was a danger…"

"Fools."

Gaia glared at the Summoned Skull before turning back round, "It is a matter of opinion." 

"And I will make mine clear."

"No need to, it doesn't matter anymore. I must go see Mystical Elf about it, if there's any magic that can help she'll be the one to find it. Stay here with him."

"No. I have business to settle."

Gaia rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll get Celtic Guardian to..."  As he walked off, he mumbled incoherently at the Summoned Skull and left to hunt for Celtic Guardian.

Summoned Skull quickly turned round and left.

*                       *                       *                       *                       *                       *           

The Celtic Guardian sighed deeply as he watched the Dark Magician's chest heave as he breathed heavily as he slept. 

After removing his helmet from his light green hair and placing it on the side, he reached out a hand and removed the wet cloth from Dark Magician's forehead, and placed his palm over it.

"…Still burning up…"

He dipped the cloth back into the bowl of water, squeezed it out then placed it back on his friend. As he did this, he leaned in and spoke quietly to him, "You had better get well…. and soon…"

He then pulled away and perched back upon his seat. _'What's going on with you?'_

It was a very distressing thing, seeing your best friend in this state.

Especially when you can't even imagine why.

The Celtic Guardian pulled his knees to his chest and rested his head upon them as he continued to watch over the slumbering Dark Magician. 

To Be Continued…


	2. Panorama

Fate's Card

"Spoken"

_'Thought'_

^~*^~* Change from the normal realm to the Card realm ^~*^~*

A/n: Thank you all SO much for the 20 encouraging reviews! (Yes, including the threats ^^;) I just have to say this: Firebird – Thank you so much for your comment! If this does become as popular as Shadowing Glory I'd faint! And I have to say that I think there should be more fics about the Duel Monsters as living beings (whether I have to write them all or not!) There _will _be an increase in the future *^_^*

Okay, public opinion time: Should there be some romance between the monsters?

Leave "^~" for a yes, and "~~" for a no, amongst your comments when you review! Now let us see if anyone will leave their opinion… ^_^; *huggles you all* Thank you!

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh; if I did you'd be scared… Bwahahaha…

Part 2 – Panorama

-~*~^~*~-

When he awoke, the Dark Magician pulled himself up quietly and looked over at the Celtic Guardian, whom had fallen asleep with his knees still tucked against his chest and his head upon them.

It didn't look comfy in the slightest, but he had been up half the night talking to and caring for him whilst he slept, so he decided that he'd let him be.

After brushing away a few strands of lime hair from his sleeping friend's face, he stepped back and smiled at him.

"Good morning," the Mystical Elf greeted, as she walked into the room, "It's good to see you up and well."

The Dark Magician looked up at her and quietly strode over to her, placing a finger upon her lips. "Shush, let's talk outside," he whispered, " I don't want to disturb the Celtic Guardian's slumber."

The Mystical Elf nodded, and both left the room quietly, leaving the other fast asleep, shutting the door so he wouldn't be disturbed. Upon exiting, they resumed their conversing.

"Now, I have a request to ask of you," the Dark Magician said to her, "Here, take this across the border and solicit the Flame Swordsman to come back with you, upon my requests," he handed her a small letter and smiled at her.

"Of course," the Mystical Elf twirled round and began to walk off.

"Thank you." He replied, as he re-opened the door and walked into the room quietly.

The Mystical Elf continued to walk along, heading towards the southern border. Unfortunately for her, she didn't realise how far it actually was, until the Summoned Skull pointed it out ever so politely as she passed him.

She narrowed her eyes and raised her right hand over them, and began to sophisticatedly jog over to the slowly departing figure on horseback. "Gaia!" 

She reached out a hand and pulled his left arm back, and he turned his head, looking over his shoulder. "Morning," he said to her as he steadied his steed, "Can I be of assistance anyhow?"

"Actually, yes. I'm running an errand for Dark Magician, and it involves making a brief visit to-"

"Ah, say no more. I have a fair idea of what is to come next," Gaia extended out a hand, "do not fear, milady, I will escort you there myself," he said light-heartedly.

"Thank you good sir knight," she sung as she took it and lifted herself upon the back of his horse, and swung her legs round, before Gaia's steed broke into a saunter.

"So," Gaia said, looking into the distance, " How is he?"

"Seemingly a lot better. He has quite a lot of energy this morning. Not much can be said for others, though."

"Yes?" Gaia peered over his shoulder at the Mystical Elf, "Hold on tightly," he added, as his horse broke out into a gallop.

"Well Celtic Guardian was fast asleep, and rather awkwardly at that."

The Mystical Elf brushed her long golden hair out of her face and from her pale blue delicate flesh, as they only sounds present were the hooves consecutively hitting the ground and the gentle whistling of the gentle zephyr brushing past her. She watched the scenery blur past before looking up at Gaia. "How long until we reach the border?"

Gaia glanced back at her, "About 20 minutes."

"Okay."

"…Have you had any luck in finding any spells to help?"

"Not as such," she sighed as she gazed at the clear blue skies. 

But she hadn't given up hope yet.

*                       *                       *                       *                       *                       *

The Celtic Guardian fell forward onto the floor, having been woken from his sleep abruptly by an agonized cry.  He frantically scrambled over to the Dark Magician, whom was trying to rise from the floor, wincing in pain, and struggling short tortured breaths. Just as Celtic Guardian reached him, he fell back down to the floor, his distressed groan barely escaping from his lips.

Every breath seemed to make the searing pain augment within his chest and head, disabling his ability to cry out in pain, and everything was blurring in and out of focus; each second was becoming increasingly unbearable…

"Oh God…no…" the Celtic Guardian gently placed a hand upon his back and carefully helped him as he struggled back up to a sitting position, then supported him, watching in distraught at each fluctuation of hurt etched upon his friend's face. 

The Dark Magician moaned out as a sharp, throbbing surge of pain shot up both his sides, before collapsing back and losing consciousness ephemerally.  

When his eyelids fluttered open, a few minutes later, and his vision fixated, he raised a hand to his head and pulled himself to his feet slowly, then turned to his trembling friend.

_'It must've been distressing to watch…' _he put on a small reassuring smile and placed a hand upon the Celtic Guardian's shoulder.

The Dark Magician was an altruistic, valorous monster and the Celtic Guardian was well aware of it. He lifted his amber eyes and looked at him, the worry present in his facial expression.

"I'm okay now," the Dark Magician said, "honestly."

The Celtic Guardian bit his lip, nodded and then sighed as he raised a hand to brush back his green hair, before speaking out. "Do…you know what is going on? What is causing this?"

"…No," the Dark Magician said, and he stepped back and looked to the floor.

_'He's afraid…' _the Celtic Guardian walked over to him and smiled, "It's a bright day, lets go outside," he began to walk along, _'Anything to get this off of our minds…'_

Both paced out of the door and began to walk along under the sun's mild warmth. "So," began the Celtic Guardian, "how long have you been up for?"

"A while, but I had resolved I'd let you sleep. You looked content, curled up on the seat awkwardly."

"Thanks," he chuckled in response.

"Mystic saw you too," Dark Magician added in, "hopefully she'll soon return from the southern border, with the Flame Swordsman,"

The Celtic Guardian tilted his head, "Yes? Maybe then we can find out what exactly he had meant by his note…"

Dark Magician agreed, "My intentions exactly, I dislike the sound of a 'disturbance'… especially after his description of the odd behaviour from the Red Eyes…"

*                       *                       *                       *                       *                       *           

Mystical Elf gazed around at the luscious, thriving vegetation of the forestry, and pushed back a large dark green flat leaf from her path and tapped her nails softly on Gaia's shoulder. 

He turned his head, "We're crossing into the Southern border just as I speak," he narrowed his eyes, "and our associate has been expecting us,"

The Mystical Elf looked up to see the stern monster staring directly at them with great sombre as Gaia halted his steed and slid off, before holding out a hand to her. After taking it and dismounting herself, she stepped forward, clutching the note in one hand and bowed her head to him, without gaining a response.

"I bring word from the Dark Magician," she said handing him the note, "and his apologies. Due to circumstances, he cannot personally come here, and so requests you to come back with us."

The Flame Swordsman read through the note and replied unyielding, "All right."

He then began marching from where they had come, scrutinizing both Gaia and her as he passed them. Gaia returned the hostile stare, before mounting on his horse and lifting Mystical Elf on as he trotted after him.

"This looks serious," he commented to her, "arbitrating by his solemn air."

"Indeed…" she had a far off tone in her seriousness.

"Would you like to share your thought?"

"It's nothing much, just a sense of déjà vu…"

"Yes?" Gaia commented as he turned his head and looked at her.

"It's… rather nostalgic, I'll explain to you later," 

Both looked over at the sound of a serious growling voice from up ahead, "Well?"

Gaia hastened up the pace until they caught up with him and headed back.

Trouble wasn't far off…

To Be Continued…


	3. Correlations

Fate's Card

"Spoken"

_'Thought'_

^~*^~* Change from the normal realm to the Card realm ^~*^~*

A/n: Wow, 43 for two chapters! Thank you! ^_^. Here are the results from my public opinion on romance: 14 pro, 2 anti. And then there were those more specific, and here I am trying to make you all happy. So, what I am resolved on is some romance (though it will only be minor, as the genre of the fic is DRAMA/ACTION/ADVENTURE) but you will have to wait to find out. Oh, and I have a great PLOT TWIST awaiting you all, you won't see this one coming (or at least I hope not ^_^;). Well, enjoy what you get here! Thanks for all the wonderful comments you leave; they're greatly appreciated.

Oh, and if you're after a fic about romance with the monsters I got an idea for a… LOVE PENTAGON! ^_^ Yes, triangles just weren't ambitious enough for me. I've started it, and it will be about Dark Magician, Celtic Guardian, Mystical Elf, Dark Magician Girl  and the Black Luster Soldier. Oooh… saucy ^_~ If you want to see me finish and post it, leave 'oo' in your review with your comments. 

 Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. But… I do own some… sprinkles! Yayz! ^_^

 Part 3 – Correlations

-~*~^~*~-

At the sound of a high-pitched scream, both monsters began running. They had decided to meet the Mystical Elf halfway, and were making good progress, until they heard her nearby scream. 

The Flame Swordsman looked very displeased, whilst Gaia was silent, partly hiding his laughter, partly embarrassed for her sake. Mystical Elf hid her face under her golden locks. 

"Well," the Dark Magician commented as he approached the three, closely followed by Celtic Guardian, "It seems you are all right after all. We heard you scream, Mystic."

"What are you doing here?" She quietly asked.

"Coming to meet you halfway, though it seems you got a ride there and back," 

Gaia nodded his head in acknowledgment then sauntered off, as Dark Magician walked over to the Flame Swordsman and extended an arm. "My apologies for the trouble," he said as they shook hands, "I had a setback. If we head back to shelter and you could explain the situation, we can decide on a necessary agreement there."

The Flame Swordsman gave a grunt of approval and Dark Magician turned round, "Mystic, can you escort him back and show him around? There are a few matters I need to address before I return."

"Of course," she said with a smile, before she set off leading the way for the both of them.

"So," Celtic Guardian said with a grin as he joined Dark Magician, " what do you think that was all about?"

"Not sure, but I assume it will be amusing. We'll ask Gaia when we next pass him, I doubt Mystic will tell us," he chuckled, before reverting to a sombre look, "there is a lot to be sorted out," he began to walk slowly in the direction the others had taken.

"Definitely, so have you decided what you are going to do about this all?"

The Dark Magician stared up at the sky with his clear blue eyes, "…Yes. You and I both know the severity of this 'disturbance' for it to be brought to us, and so we will all go personally right to the source."

Amber eyes fixated upon him, "You do think it will spread then?"

"Yes. We will all have to face it sooner or later, and I'd rather go straight to it, with a chance of staying in one piece than wait for it to come to me when I'm in worse condition than I am now,"

"So would I. I'll make sure nothing happens to you, I promise."

Dark Magician smiled, "Only as long as it doesn't endanger your life,"

"Sure. So-"

Both froze as they watched the Flame Swordsman dive and Gaia pull Mystical Elf upon his steed just in time to miss the giant flame shooting straight at them. 

The Celtic Guardian drew his sword and the Dark Magician grasped his staff tightly as the roar of the Harpie's Pet Dragon rung in the air, before running straight over to join the others. 

As the three dodged the oncoming flames again, the other two stopped before reaching them, the Dark Magician clutching his staff as a whip snapped round it, belonging to the accessorized Harpie Lady watching them from the right side. As he pulled to keep it his grasp, the Celtic Guardian launched his sword down upon the whip, slicing through it, giving it back to him. The Harpie Lady launched razor-sharp claws at the Celtic Guardian as his weapon was down, luckily only just missing him as he ducked out of the way, and Dark Magician smacked his staff round her head, before both joined the others as their attacks failed to do much damage to the fiery beast.

"We can't… stay here… like… this…!" the Celtic Guardian called out as he dived to the ground.

"But what can… we do?" the Mystical Elf said, stepping back, avoiding the flying Harpie Lady as she flew through the air quickly.

All froze as a small fluffy brown ball rolled in, and blinked big round eyes. Kuriboh jumped into the air, barely scraping the next flame ball.  

Gaia instantly pushed his steed on and grabbed the Kuriboh; "I have an idea!" he called out.

And as the other four ran, heads down, the Dark Magician pulled back his arms and readied his Dark Magic Attack, sending it at both the enraged monsters, before running off to the others.

"How long do you think that gives us to run?" Celtic Guardian questioned him as they followed Gaia back.

"Not very!" he called out, peering back over his shoulder. 

"…Whoa! Where did that come from?" Celtic Guardian said, looking back as a giant Red Eyes Black Dragon flew out, dropping in front of the two behind them.

Gaia couldn't help but give out a little snicker and Mystic Elf shook her head. "It's been following us since we arrived over the border. We didn't realize until mystic turned her head only to have the Red Eyes right next to her and screamed,"

"Oh… well that'll buy us some time!"

"Yeah, hopefully enough to be able to perform the Black Luster Ritual."

All placed their focus onto Gaia. 

"Thank this little fellow for the idea," he retorted, looking down at the fluff ball in his grasp, "if it works, just make sure you keep the Black Luster Soldier under reigns,"

The Mystical Elf laughed, reminiscing the last time he was present… "It will be my pleasure," she lulled sweetly.

They quickly took their chance to sneak away, or, at least, began to before their luck changed.

The Dark Magician froze, clutching his stomach as a sharp pain ran horizontally across it, before he leant forward as the twinge ran down from the top of his back all the way down to the small of his back, leaving him gasping for air. He found himself falling to the ground as everything spun around him.

The Celtic Guardian pushed his way over, dropping to the Dark Magician's level before looking back at the others over his shoulder, "Go!" he called out to them, "I'll stay back! Quickly!"

Dark Magician grimaced as he raised his focus; just managing to see the others run off as the Celtic Guardian readied his sword, narrowing his amber eyes next to him. As he carefully listened around him, he quickly swung his sword to his left overhead, it clashing with the claws of the Harpie Lady, who screeched at him as he jumped back slashing at her, before flying back, and round.

The Dark Magician groaned as he struggled himself up and raised his staff, into a defensive position, despite the pain and blurring present, his chest heaving as he gasped air in. "W…atch…out…!" he murmured, trying to warn his friend.

The Celtic Guardian managed to leap out of the way of the oncoming flame, unluckily giving the Harpie Lady a free shot, slicing her claws into his back, before kicking him down.

The Dark Magician decided to do the only thing he could; he began to power up a Dark Magic attack. But as he did, a sharp shooting pain ran through his head and he stopped, crying out in pain. 

The Celtic Guardian used the distraction of the Harpie Lady's attention to get up and strike her with his weapon, causing her to scream shrilly and fly away, injured. The Celtic Guardian raised his arm to protect his head as a flame shot straight by him. He suddenly yelped as he dropped his sword from his grip, the heat from it burning his palm. 

"This doesn't look good," he said, looking up at the approaching Dragon.

The Dark Magician ignored the agonizing pain and shot out a Dark Magic attack at the creature, before it could attack. Suddenly, from behind them, the Black Luster Soldier emerged, and struck the Harpie Pet Dragon with his attack, sending it into retreat before turning to the other two and smirking, looking at their very ruffled looks.

The Celtic Guardian sighed in relief before slipping his foot under his sword, flicking it up into the air and quickly catching it and sliding it in its case before shaking his hand, then going over to the Dark Magician, whom was struggling to rise to his feet, still under the effects of his illness.

"Took your time," Celtic Guardian groaned, wincing at the sting of his back, as he held one of Dark Magician's arms round his neck and held him up by the waist, before placing his amber stare upon his best friend, "don't worry, I'll have you back and resting in no time," 

The Dark Magician nodded, and narrowed his bright blue eyes and he sighed in relief. 

There was still much to do though, and he wasn't going to be able to avoid it _that _easily.

But a rest _was_ a rest…

To Be Continued…


	4. Inauguration

Fate's Card

"Spoken"

_'Thought'_

^~*^~* Change from the normal realm to the Card realm or vice versa ^~*^~*

**A/n:** 63 reviews! Thanks for the support! ^_^ *Huggles you all* I apologise for my slow updating as of recent, it's a problem I'm trying to resolve as we speak ^_^.

**Update Notices:**  Since I don't have a particular pattern of updating, just leave an e-mail address in your review or mail me at celtic_guardian_gurly@hotmail.com /my address stated in my bio and I'll mail you when I actually do update this fic … ^_^

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Part 4 – Inauguration

-~*~^~*~-

Dark Magician let out a sigh as he took a seat, the Celtic Guardian carefully supporting him. He lifted his effeminate blue eyes to the other, all ready seated company, as Celtic Guardian took a seat next to him and he began his proposal, "The situation is only going to get worse the longer we delay the inevitable, we have to act now."

The Flame Swordsman nodded in approval whilst Mystical Elf stood up in protest.

"Surely you cannot mean you want to go in your condition!" she exclaimed, furrowing her brow, "It's not safe, nor in the best interests of your health,"

The Dark Magician weakly smiled as he beckoned her closer, "Sometimes there are more important things at stake than your own safety, and though I'm flattered that you have such concern over me, it is in my best interests to act as hastily as such,"

Mystical Elf clenched her fingers together, "how so, Dark?" she questioned, not cynically though, rather with confusion.

"The situation is more dire than you or I would like to think," he sighed, "whatever this is, its consequences are spreading like wildfire. It is not long until it reaches us. I'd rather face it whilst I still have a chance than when I do not,"

Mystical Elf bit her lip and nodded with a melancholic comprehension. 

"Don't worry Mystic, I'll keep a close watch over him," Celtic Guardian added, placing his amber gaze up the blonde elf.

Meanwhile the Dark Magician had turned to the Flame Swordsman, "Do you have any idea of where the source of this predicament is?"

The Flame Swordsman nodded, "It is believed to have originated from deep within the forests not too far from the borderline. Our main problem is that the terrain is arduous and many unknown creatures lie within. We don't know how it has been affected by all of this trouble; we will have to run the risk of finding out first-hand."

The Dark Magician considered this carefully, before speaking out, "We shall round up all the monsters here… if Summoned Skull joins with us, the rest can form a barricade here, so if the worst does happen, there is still a chance to stop this phenomenon from reaching any further than here," he slowly pulled himself back to his feet, before turning to Mystical Elf, "you do not have to come with us unless you absolutely are content on it," he remarked.

"You cannot rid of me that easily, Dark," she said softly, "I want to come along, do not worry about me,"

      With that, all began to make their preparations for their campaign.

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*

Yugi's large violet eyes widened and he furrowed his brow, pausing on the spot, "Guys…! Come here quickly!" he remarked.

Joey, being the nearest, hung over Yugi's shoulder and looked at his with concern. "S'up Yug?" he questioned.

Yugi stared down at the duel monster card in his hand before looking up at his tall blonde friend, "look at the card," he commented with bewilderment.

Joey squinted his eyes at it, before almost jumping out of his skin, "Holy-!" he managed to exclaim, before he quickly silenced.

Téa came running over, her blue eyes brimming with worry, "what is it guys?" she quizzed, looking at the object in Yugi's small hand that both seemed fixated upon, "is something wrong? Why are you staring at the card?"

Joey stepped back, shaking his head, his eyes still wide, "that ain't right…" he murmured, Yugi nodding in agreement.

Téa raised an eyebrow at the pair, "you are so weird," she commented, beginning to walk away, "there's nothing but a normal card and yet you both look like you've seen a ghost or something,"

Yugi slid the card back into his deck and blinked impassively, before turning round to Joey, "You did see that, right?" 

Joey slowly nodded, "Yeah… that card now officially freaks me out… I guess Téa missed the show,"

"Uh-huh…"

Joey folded his arms tightly across his chest, "…that was just so…demonic though… that look… no one would believe us if we said that we saw the picture of the monster _actually _change though…"

Yugi looked up at the sky and sighed, "I know…"

Joey shook his head in disbelief, "I swear, after that and the whole Dark Magician incident that your deck is possessed or somethin'," he commented, before placing a hand upon Yugi's shoulder, "lets catch the others up, we'll figure this out later,"

"Okay."

Both began to run after Téa down the street, as fast as they could to catch up with the others.

^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*^~*

A dimming beam of bright sunlight broke into the quiet sanctuary of the enclosed garden.  Beneath the tall, thriving canopies of deep green trees and alongside a lusciously vegetating assortment of vibrantly coloured herbs and flowers, the beam of light caused the clear, flowing water of a quiet spring to glisten as a pair of slender, spectre-like hands cupped some up and threw them upon rainbow-coloured features. 

Soul Release's eyes opened as her figure dispersed away, only to swirl up back form, this time on her feet, the gentle zephyr tossing her ghostly hair about. Her intuition could sense a disturbance… perhaps her powers would come in of some use after all… especially since she had some compassion for those involved…

She was going to check things out, before preparing.

In another second, her physical form swirled down, shrinking, until it had all dispersed. 

Indigo hair fell forward against the pale, delicate flesh of the Dark Magician's face as he leant against his staff, his bright eyes gazing off ahead of him. He stood at the border, waiting for the other few figures to arrive so their small party could take off and attempt to sort this whole mess out; currently only himself, his best friend and their visitor were at arms, with no sight of the others. He sighed, before standing up, off of his staff and looking up. 

Perfect timing for a momentary bout of immaturity; just to get it out of his system before they set off…

He extended his staff towards the ribs of the Celtic Guardian; he poked the end into him before snapping it back and leaning on it, trying to stifle his laughter as the other jumped in response, before turning round and placing his burning amber gaze on the purple clad figure and pulling a face as Dark Magician let out his laugh.

"Sorry," he said, "I couldn't resist,"

Celtic Guardian turned round, shaking his head, suppressing his smirk. This was far from over… Dark Magician's laughter died down into a smile as he put his weight onto his staff waiting for the others.

It was Celtic Guardian's turn to laugh, when he knocked back the end of the other's staff, causing him to fall into a pile on the floor. "Either could I,"

The Mystical Elf shook her head as she walked past, "you two are so childish," she commented, flicking one of the Celtic Guardian's long, elegant ears, much to his annoyance.

Summoned Skull shot both a weird look as Celtic Guardian helped Dark Magician to his feet.

"Well," Dark Magician began, slightly embarrassed, "we should get going," he said, finishing dusting himself off.

The Flame Swordsman began to lead them on, the newly arrived Black Luster Soldier catching up with his confident stride, followed by the Summoned Skull, Mystical Elf and finally Dark Magician and Celtic Guardian at the back.

Soul Release's gaze watched them, as her unnoticed multicoloured ethereal figure lay in the safety of the tall densely growing trees. "Hmm," her angelic voice murmured, "it looks like this will be worse than I thought from my premonition…"

In an instant, having speculated enough to summarise what she needed to prepare, before her form turned to vapour and swirled tightly leaving nothing but a calming silence, excluding the footsteps of  the small band of monsters as they purged through the thick vegetation towards the unknown…

To Be Continued…


	5. Breaking

Fate's Card

"Spoken"

_'Thought'_

^~*^~* Change from the normal realm to the Card realm or vice versa ^~*^~*

**A/n:** 74 reviews! Thank you! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I was drawing for mine and my friend Kat's (soon to be) online manga and trying to do schoolwork… sorry for being SO slow! *blinks sweetly* forgive me? You can check out the very little amount of posted stuff at: http://www.geocities.com/bringers_of_yaoi/kabuki.html Thank you!

**Update Notices:**  Since I don't have a particular pattern of updating, just leave an e-mail address in your review or mail me at celtic_guardian_gurly@hotmail.com /my address stated in my bio and I'll mail you when I actually do update this fic … ^_^

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.

Part 5 – Breaking

-~*~^~*~-

The band of monsters had been marching on continuously for quite sometime, with the exception of a few breaks either for the Dark Magician to recover from an attack or the more occasional scuffle between the two egocentric warriors, the Black Luster Soldier and the Summoned Skull. As such, the Flame Swordsman led the group, the Dark Magician, Celtic Guardian and Mystical Elf closely following, the Black Luster Soldier not far off with the Summoned Skull taking the rear. Suddenly, a loud rip rung out through the air, as a low-lying branch caught a piece of flowing green material. 

"Fiddlesticks…" 

All eyes fixated upon the female elf and watched as she finished inspecting the tear in her dress and met with their looks, "…what?"

Summoned Skull scoffed at her, "fiddlesticks? You have serious issues…"

"Look who's talking," Black Luster Soldier commented, walking over to Mystical Elf, "some people are just born with rods up their-"

The indigo-haired mage spun round and sighed, interrupting the cocky redhead before he and the Summoned Skull got into _another fight… "Can't you two be civil for any longer than 10 minutes? At this rate you'll draw unnecessary attention to us,"_

Celtic Guardian almost jumped out of his skin, before drawing out his sword in one swift move and placing it to the throat of their unexpected guest.

"Too late for that…" the Witty Phantom laughed, scrutinizing the elf in front of him, "you're presence was…expected,"

"Say what!" the Black Luster Soldier exclaimed, quickly making his way over, following the purple-clad mage.

"Elf-boy here may be sharp, but you as a group are most certainly not. And I can't say much about your hospitality," the creature smirked deviously, "you should try a warmer approach for the others waiting for you…"

The Witty Phantom scrunched up his nose as he caught sight of an unnatural flash as the Summoned Skull began to power up, and decided that about now was the time to split, and as attention focused on trying to mellow out the angry duel monster, he took the opportunity to leap back and make his escape.

Dark Magician looked up, and caught sight of the Witty Phantom waving his hat at them all from somewhat of a distance; before the black mage could react, the creature vanished into the trees, leaving one warning with them, "I have tricks up my sleeves, waiting just for you…"

Dark Magician frowned as he stared on at the now 'empty' space stretching over to the horizon, raising a slender hand to wipe back the indigo locks hanging out of his helmet and swaying in front of his effeminate blue eyes, before turning around, meeting the look of a pair of amber eyes, as Celtic Guardian placed a hand on his shoulder.  

"Yippee, more trouble," the elf commented, before both monsters rolled their eyes and watched as Mystical Elf jumped in between the Summoned Skull and the Black Luster Soldier and scolded them before either could launch their first attack against the other.

"You two are such children!" the blonde elf frowned, pushing each one's head straight into the other's,  before dusting her hands of them leaving both rubbing their foreheads and grumbling a variety of profanities. 

Dark walked over to the Flame Swordsman, arms folded tightly across his chest as he spoke out, "I think we'd be better off splitting into a few groups, it's much more conspicuous when were all crowded together and I don't think I can take anymore of _their** pointless bickering,"**_

Mystical Elf gave a stern nod of agreement from where she stood, fed up of 'mothering' a pair of childish arrogant pains, an energetic elf, a mage that seemed to almost die every few minutes and… she mentally shrugged not really having any concerns about or for the Flame Swordsman. 

"The temple isn't too far from here. There are two separate paths to it, six of us and with the knowledge of our presence our backs must be watched." Dark nodded as he processed the options, and beckoned the others over with a wave of his hand, to address them.

 "Okay, here's the plan… we split into three pairs… Flame Swordsman and Summoned Skull, if you two stay here and watch our backs… Myst, if you and Black Luster Soldier take the path on the left, and that will leave Celtic and me to take the path on the right; is that okay with you all?"

A spectre-like hand plucked the last of the fragrant herb leaves required, and Soul Release dispersed, her form reappearing within the shelter of her enclosed home. She picked up a roll of bandage, placing the leaves onto the material, folding the herbs inside and placing the bandage into a bowl of boiling water to soak. 

She then vaporised to the bed she had waiting, fluffing up the last of the pillows and straightening out the sheet she had lay over the other, in order to prevent blood seeping onto the bed's original covering when the time came.  She then walked a few steps to the small table nearby, hovering over and flicking through a large book, pausing as she came across what she was searching for, briefly running through the verse she had been searching for.

She was ready… this was one life that she was capable to save… and was content on saving; but, two others hanging on the edge were beyond even her powers… 

The sound of soft, padding feet broke the spirit from her thoughts, and she looked to see the shimmering sleek silver coat of Silver Fang stream past as the creature shot round to her feet and stared up at her. She bent down, extending out a hand to caress the artic wolf's coat before giving it an encouraging pat, watching as it gave her a look of acknowledgement before sprinting off.

"You keep an eye on Dark," Mystical Elf said sternly to Celtic Guardian as she folded her arms, before turning to the black mage in question, "and you keep two eyes on Celtic."

The elf frowned at her, "and what's that supposed to mean?"

"You know what I'm talking about, and hopefully so does Dark. Both of you, just make it to the temple safely, okay?"

Both gave a nod, before Mystical Elf turned to the waiting Black Luster Soldier and walked over, "let's go then,"

Luster gave a smirk and a quick salute to the other two, before walking along to the path he and the female elf were to take, purposely pushing past Summoned Skull on his way.

Summoned Skull began to mutter a variety of insults at the soldier, barely resisting the urge to shoot a bolt of lightning up the redheads… he growled as the Dark Magician gave him a warning stare, almost as if he knew exactly what the skull was thinking.

"When you think everything ahs been done here, come and meet us all by the temple. Be careful,"

The Celtic Guardian nodded, emphasizing the Dark Magician's request, before both began to walk off in the other direction.

"Either way," the black mage said quietly to his companion, "I have the feeling were walking straight into darkness…"

The elf nodded, sighing as he turned his head to place his burning amber eyes on the purple-clad figure, "I'm… scared for you Dark… whatever is behind this all has been playing with you… it makes you wonder… what's next?"

The mage returned the gaze as he stopped in his tracks, and tilted his head at Celtic.

"You shouldn't depress yourself over thoughts as such… maybe it will be better for us to go along with a blind eye; fear will only oppose us…"

The elf gave a silent nod, breaking the look before both continued to walk along.

All the time a tempest raged inside the spellcaster's head.

His friends were all that kept him fighting, without them and he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being used like a puppet to break them down; and if they crumbled, he knew he was soon to follow. 

He was especially concerned with the elf beside him, his best friend; the one he drew most strength from… concern for him was about ready to start breaking the swordsman, and a feeling of guilt was beginning to set over the mage. He was wondering if it was affecting the others too…

He _had to protect them._

_At __any cost, he was willing._

To Be Continued…


End file.
